Unlicensed Networks

Indoor-positioning technologies that can be used by retail establishments and other businesses to track and market to consumers are attracting growing scrutiny, as evidenced by a letter sent from Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) to Euclid, which markets Wi-Fi-generated shopper analytics.

The Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative added another TV white space (TVWS) deployment to its portfolio, rolling out a pilot project in collaboration with the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH) and local Internet service provider UhuruOne to provide wireless broadband access to university students and faculty in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

According to the agenda for the First Responder Network Authority's meeting this past week, board member Paul Fitzgerald was supposed to deliver an update on the Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC), which was created to provide input to FirstNet from the public-safety community.

Wireless Internet service provider Cal.net has rolled out a TV white-space (TVWS) network in El Dorado County, Calif., using equipment from Carlson Wireless Technologies.

Impulse radio ultra wide-band (IR-UWB) is gaining traction for use in indoor positing and tracking. Two French entities--BeSpoon, a fabless semiconductor company, and French research-and-technology organization CEA-Leti--said they have demonstrated an IR-UWB integrated circuit able to measure distances within a few centimeters' accuracy.

The University of Melbourne issued a surprising analysis that indicates "inherently energy inefficient" radio access networks are "the biggest threat to the sustainability of cloud services."